Avery  Architectural  and  Fine  Arts  Library 
Gii  i  01  Si  ymoi  R  B.  Di  rsi  Old  York  Lihrary 


AN 

'  ORATION, 

COMMEMORATIVE  OF  THE  LATE 

^aior=<0enerai  aieranDer  Hamilton] 


PRONOUNCED  BEFORE 


The  Neio-York  State  Society  of  the  Cincinnati, 

ON  TUESDAY,  THE  olST  JULY,  1804. 


BY  J.M.  MASON,  D.  D. 


PASTOR  OF  THE  FIRST  ASSOCIATE  REFORMED  CHURCH  IN  THE 
CITY  OF  NEW-YORK. 


Quis  desiderio  sit  pudor  aut  modus 
Tam  cari  capitis  ! — Hor. 

♦iw  u  dtyotQri  kxi  mrd  \vx$i  o*^t)      «iroA*7rSv        — Xenopm. 


$eto*J|or& : 

PRINTED  BY  HOPKINS  AND  SEYMOUR, 
AND  SOLD  BY  G.  F.  HOPKINS,  AT  WASHINGTON'S  HEAD, 
NO.  118,  PEARL-STREET. 

1804. 

[COPT-RIGHT  SECURED  ACCORDING  VO  LAW.] 


t 

3<>Z  \ 


• 

• 


AT  a  Meeting  of  the  Society  of  the  Cincinnati,  held  at  the  Federal 
Hall  in  the  City  of  New-York,  on  Tuesday,  3 1st  July,  1804; 

Resolved  unanimously,  That  the  respectful  Thanks  of 
this  Society  be  presented  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  M.  Mason,  for 
the  very  eloquent,  impressive  and  instructive  ORATION,  de- 
livered by  him  this  day,  at  their  request,  on  the  ever  to  be  la- 
mented Death  of  their  President,  JVIajor-General  Alexander 
Hamilton  ;  and  that  a  Committee  be  appointed  to  wait  on  him 
and  request  that  he  will  be  pleased  to  furnish  them  with  a  copy 
for  the  press. 

Resolved  unanimously,  That  the  present  Committee  of 
Arrangement  wait  on  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  M.  Mason,  with  a 
copy  of  these  resolutions. 


Extract  from  the  Minutes, 

W.  POPHAM,  Secretary. 


m 


✓ 

/ 


FUNERAL  ORATION. 


SaD,  my  fellow-citizens,  are  the  recollections 
and  forebodings  which  the  present  solemnities  force 
upon  the  mind.  Five  years  have  not  elapsed  since 
your  tears  flowed  for  the  Father  of  your  Country, 
and  you  are  again  assembled  to  shed  them  over  her 
eldest  Son.  No,  it  is  not  an  illusion — would  to 
God  it  were  :  Your  eyes  behold  it :  the  Urn  which 
bore  the  ashes  of  Washington,  is  followed  by  the 
Urn  which  bears  the  ashes  of  Hamilton.  Cruel  pri- 
vation ! — But  I  forbear.  God's  "way  is  in  the  sea, 
"and  his  path  in  the  great  waters,  and  his  foot-steps 
"  are  not  known."  It  is  not  for  mortals  to  repine, 
much  less  to  arraign.  Our  Hamilton  is  removed  ; 
and  we  have  nothing  left  but  to  recal  his  image  ; 
to  gather  up  his  maxims,  and  to  profit  by  our  af- 
fliction. Accompany  me,  therefore,  to  a  short  re- 
trospect. I  feel  that  I  shall  not  justify  an  appoint- 
ment too  imposing  to  be  declined.  Your  own 
hearts  must  supply  my  deficiency.  I  aspire  to  no- 
thing more  than  a  faint  outline  of  the  man  whom 
you  loved. 


6 


Presages  of  his  future  eminence  were  evolved 
by  the  first  buddings  of  intellect  in  Alexander 
Hamilton  The  course  of  the  boy,  like  that  of 
the  man,  was  ardent,  rapid,  and  beyond  the  reach 
of  his  contemporaries.  History  will  hereafter  relate 
that  he  was  numbered  among  Statesmen  at  an  age 
when  in  others  the  rudiments  of  character  are 
scarcely  visible.  In  the  contest  with  Great-Britain, 
which  called  forth  every  talent  and  every  passion, 
his  juvenile  pen  asserted  the  claims  of  the  colonies, 
against  writers  from  whom  it  would  derogate  to 
say  that  they  were  merely  respectable.  An  un- 
known antagonist,  whose  thrust  was  neither  to  be 
repelled  nor  parried,  excited  inquiry  ;  and  when  he 
began  to  be  discovered,  the  effect  was  apparently 
so  disproportioned  to  the  cause,  that  his  papers 
were  ascribed  to  a  statesman  who  then  held  a  happy 
sway  in  the  councils  of  his  country,  who  has  since 
rendered  her  the  most  essential  services ;  and  who 
still  lives  to  adorn  her  name*.  But  the  truth  could 
not  long  be  concealed.  The  powers  of  Hamilton 
created  their  own  evidence  ;  and  America  saw,  with 
astonishment,  a  lad  of  seventeen  in  the  rank  of  her 
advocates,  at  a  time  when  her  advocates  were  pa- 
triots and  sages.  A  distinction  thus  nobly  acquired, 
and  ably  maintained,  was  a  pledge  to  the  common- 
wealth, which  he  lost  no  time  in  redeeming.  His  first 


*  John  Jay,  Esq. 


7 


step,  from  the  college,  was  into  a  military  post ;  his 
second  into  the  family  and  confidence  of  Washing- 
ton. vHere  he  had  opportunities  of  studying  a  man, 
from  whom  no  other  man  was  too  great  to  learn  ; 
of  analyzing  those  rare  qualities  which  met  in  his 
character  ;  and  of  nourishing  his  own  magnanimity 
by  free  communication  with  the  magnanimity  of 
his  chief.  His  sound  understanding,  his  compre- 
hensive views,  his  promptitude,  application,  and  pa- 
tience, would  have  endeared  him  to  a  man  less  dis- 
criminating than  Washington  ;  but  to  him  they 
were  inestimable,  and  they  speedily  sunk  the  patron 
in  the  friend.  The  pair  became  inseparable.  While 
others  were  indulging  in  wonted  gaiety,  they  were 
closeted  on  matters  of  state  ;  and  the  pensive  brow 
of  the  youth  was  often  the  first  intimation  of  seri- 
ous design  in  the  veteran. 

It  was  impossible  for  such  a  pupi:,  in  such  a  school, 
not  to  be  conspicuous.  The  materials  furnished 
by  Washington's  experience  ;  by  his  consummate 
prudence  ;  by  the  disclosure  of  his  plans,  and  of  the 
springs  of  national  operations,  fostered  the  genius 
of  Hamilton,  and  fitted  him  for  command.  His 
agency  in  the  correspondence  of  the  Commander 
in  Chief,  and  in  directing  the  movements  of  the 
army,  is  for  the  research  of  his  biographer.  I  pass 
over  his  personal  valour,  not  only  because  it  never 
was  disputed  ;  but  because  the  possession  of  it,  as 


being  one  of  the  most  common  of  military  attributes, 
is  not  so  much  the  praise  of  a  soldier,  as  the  want 
of  it  is  his  infamy.  But  be  it  remembered  with 
pride,  that  he  was  as  humane  as  he  was  brave.  He 
knew  how  to  storm  an  enemy's  intrenchments,  but 
not  how  to  sacrifice  a  suppliant.  His  gentleness 
assuaged  martial  rigour ;  nor  was  his  sword  polluted 
by  a  drop  of  blood  wantonly  or  carelessly  shed. 

The  capture  of  Lord  Cornwallis  having  secured 
our  independence,  there  was  nothing  to  protract  the 
war,  but  a  few  measures  proper  to  save  appearances, 
and  to  prepare  for  acceding,  with  decorum,  to  preli- 
minaries of  peace.  It  became,  of  course,  a  subject  of 
solicitude  to  reflecting  young  men  who  had  no 
profession  but  that  of  arms,  how  they  should  pro- 
cure an  honourable  subsistence,  and  be  useful  to 
the  community,  when  that  profession  should  be  su- 
perseded. Among  these  was  Hamilton.  En- 
cumbered with  a  family,  destitute  of  funds,  and 
having  no  inducement  to  continue  in  the  arniv,  he 
sheathed  his  sword,  and,  at  the  age  of  twenty-five, 
applied  to  the  study  of  the  Law. 

To  most  men,  sudden  alterations  of  habit  are  sel- 
dom advantageous,  often  ruinous.  Hamilton  they 
did  but  introduce  to  an  acquaintance  with  his  own 
inexhaustible  mind.  Hardly  had  he  exchanged  the 
camp  for  the  bar,  when  he  burst  forth  in  the  lus- 


9 

tre  of  a  civilian ;  and  gave  a  promise  which  he  more 
than  fulfilled,  of  excelling  in  jurisprudence,  as  he 
had  excelled  in  war. 

But  it  was  not  for  Hamilton  to  detach  his  pri- 
vate pursuits  from  the  public  welfare.  Scenes  were 
about  to  open  in  which  it  would  need  his  re- 
source and  his  energy.  The  war  of  independence 
had  terminated  gloriously ;  the  states  had  risen  to 
their  natural  position ;  their  career  of  prosperity 
had  commenced,  but  their  struggles  were  not  over. 
Resentments,  jealousies,  and  the  farce  of  an  advis- 
ing government,  kept  them  in  jeopardy.  That 
foresight,  moderation,  and  firmness ;  that  compre- 
hension of  the  public  interest,  and  of  the  means  of 
promoting  it ;  that  zeal,  and  vigilance,  and  integri- 
ty, which  were  indispensable  to  our  safety,  the  in- 
spiration of  God  had  assembled  in  the  soul  of  Ha- 
milton. To  many  who  now  hear  me  it  is  fami- 
liar, that  after  the  conclusion  of  peace,  some  of  our 
citizens,  impelled  by  their  temper,  their  cupidity, 
or  both,  were  meditating  violence  against  the  pro- 
perty and  persons  of  all  who  had  remained  in  this 
city  during  the  war.  The  generous  Hamilton  re- 
volted. No  consideration  of  private  friendship  or 
hazard  could  prevail  with  him  to  connive  at  faith- 
lessness and  revenge.  He  remonstrated  against  a 
scheme  of  which  the  policy  was  as  false,  as  the  spi- 
rit was  malignant.    His  voice  was  authority,  for  it 

B 


• 


10 

was  honour  and  truth.    The  public  listened,  and 

the  infatuation  was  at  an  end*. 

To  these  agitations  succeeded  a  more  perplexing- 
difficulty.  The  confederation,  framed  under  the 
pressure  of  common  danger,  proved  unequal  to  its 
object  whenever  that  pressure  was  removed.  Thir- 
teen republics,  with  an  internal  organization  which 
commanded  their  whole  moral  and  physical  force; 
connected  by  a  fictitious  tie  under  a  head  without 
a  single  effective  power,  afforded  a  spectacle  of 
which  it  is  hard  to  say,  whether  it  was  more  ludi- 
crous or  melancholy.  Such  a  condition  of  things 
could  not  last.  The  very  first  occurrence  which 
should  put  the  will  of  congress  at  issue  with  the  will 
of  one  of  the  larger  states,  would  have  dissolved  the 
phantom  ;  and  shown  America  to  be,  what  the  dis- 
cerning at  home  and  abroad  already  perceived  her 
to  be,  in  theory,  a  nation  ;  in  fact,  a  number  of 
rival  and  hostile  sovereignties.  The  evils  to  be  ap- 
prehended from  such  a  conflict  were  alarming  ;  and 
they  were  approaching  with  no  less  certainty,  than 
it  is  certain  that  the  principles  of  human  action  are 
not  to  be  altered,  nor  suspended  by  compact.  The 
failure  of  a  request  from  Congress  for  permission  to 

*  On  this  subject  it  would  be  less  a  compliment  to  mention,  than  an 
frijury  to  omit,  the  name  of  his  Excellency  George  Clinton,  Esq.  then  Go- 
vernor of  the  State  ;  whose  honourable,  independent,  and  successful  exer- 
tions to  restrain  our  citizens,  cannot  be  remembered  but  with  respect  and 
veneration. 


• 


11 

levy  a  small -duty  upon  imports,  was  hastening  a  crisis 
which  the  mighty  mind  of  Hamilton  proposed  to 
avert.  With  the  express  intention  of  making  an  ef- 
fort to  retrieve  our  affairs  by  establishing  an  efficient 
general  government,  did  he  consent  to  be  nominated 
as  a  candidate  for  the  legislature  of  this  state.  The 
design  was  magnanimous.  It  embraced  the  only 
expedient  to  prevent  our  ruin  ;  but  it  was  confided 
to  a  few  chosen  friends.  For  such  was  the  national 
inexperience,  and  the  popular  jealousy,  that  the  least 
suspicion  of  his  purpose  would  have  blasted  his  re- 
putation as  an  enemy  to  freedom.  Oh,  Hamil- 
ton !  equally  pure  and  disinterested  were  all  thy 
plans,  though  often  misunderstood  and  calumni- 
ated !  And  now,  when  there  is  no  more  room  for 
suspicion,  let  his  country  in  judging  of  them,  not 
forget,  that  the  very  measure  which,  at  first,  she 
would  bitterly  have  execrated,  has  been  her  salva- 
tion. Yes,  it  is  indubitable,  that  the  original  germ 
out  of  which  has  grown  up  her  unexampled  pros- 
perity, was  in*  the  bosom  of  Hamilton.  From  the 
abortive  attempt  of  Congress  already  mentioned, 
proceeded  a  commercial  convention  ;  and  to  the  re- 
port of  that  body,  which,  as  he  foresaw,  was  un- 
able to  extricate  the  nation,  do  we  owe  the  Federal 
Convention.  Here,  Americans,  was  the  constella- 
tion of  your  heroes  and  your  statesmen.  Here  your 
Washington  presided,  and  your  Hamilton  shone. 
What  weight  the  first  of  these  names  added  to  eve- 


12 


ry  thing  which  received  its  sanction,  and  what  a 
conciliating  charm  it  diffused  through  the  states,  you 
need  not  to  be  informed.  But  you  ought  not  to  be 
ignorant,  that  the  benefit  arising  from  the  signature 
of  Washington  substantiates  a  claim  on  your  gra- 
titude to  Hamilton;  as  it  was  the  advice  of  the 
latter  previously  consulted,  which  persuaded  the 
former  to  accept  a  seat  in  the  convention.  A  pru- 
dent secrecy  covers  the  transactions  of  that  august 
assembly.  But  could  the  veil  be  drawn  aside,  you 
would  hear  the  youth  of  thirty  fascinating,  with 
his  eloquence,  the  collective  wisdom  of  the  states  -t 
and  instructing  the  hoary  patriot  in  the  recondite 
science  of  government.  You  would  observe  all  the 
emotions  of  his  manly  heart  occupying,  in  turn,  his 
expressive  features ;  and  see,  through  the  window 
in  his  breast,  every  anxiety,  every  impulse,  every 
thought,  directed  to  your  happiness. 

The  result  is  in  your  hands :  It  is  in  your  national 
existence.  Not  such,  indeed,  as  Hamilton  wish- 
ed, but  such  as  he  could  obtain,  and  as  the  states 
would  ratify,  is  the  federal  constitution.  His  ideas 
of  a  government  which  should  elevate  the  charac- 
ter, preserve  the  unity,  and  perpetuate  the  liberties  of 
America,  went  beyond  the  provisions  of  that  instru- 
ment. Accustomed  to  view  men  as  they  are  ;  and 
to  judge  of  what  they  will  be,  from  what  they 
ever  have  been,  he  distrusted  any  political  order 


13 

which  admits  the  baneful  charity  of  supposing  them 
to  be  what  they  ought  to  be.      He  knew  how 
averse  they  are  from  even  wholesome  restraint  -y 
how  obsequious  to  flattery  ;  how  easily  deceiv- 
ed by  misrepresentation :  how  partial,  how  vehe- 
ment, how  capricious.    He  knew  that  vanity,  the 
love  of  distinction,  is  inseparable  from  man  ;  that  if 
it  be  not  turned  into  a  channel  useful  to  the  govern- 
ment, it  will  force  a  channel  for  itself;  and  if  cut 
off  from  other  egress,  will  issue  in  the  most  cor- 
rupt of  all  aristocracies — the  aristocracy  of  mo- 
ney.   He  knew,  that  an  extensive  territory^  a  pro- 
gressive population,  an  expanding  commerce,  diver- 
sified climate,  and  soil,  and  manners,  and  interest, 
must  generate  faction ;  must  interfere  with  foreign 
views,  and  present  emergencies  requiring,  in  the 
general  organization,  much  tone  and  promptitude. 
A  strong  government,  therefore  ;  that  is,  a  govern- 
ment stable  and  vigorous;   adequate  to  all  the 
forms  of  national  exigency  ;  and  furnished  with  the 
principles  of  self-preservation,  was  undoubtedly  his 
preference ;  and  he  preferred  it  because  he  consci- 
entiously believed  it  to  be  necessary.     A  system 
which  he  would  have  entirely  approved,  would  pro- 
bably keep  in  their  places  those  little  men  who  as- 
pire to  be  great ;  would  withdraw  much  fuel  from 
the  passions  of  the  multitude  ;  would  diminish  the 
materials  which  the  worthless  employ  for  their  own 
aggrandizement ;  would  crown  peace  at  home  with 


14 


respectability  abToad ;  but  would  never  infringe  the 
liberty  of  an  honest  man.  From  his  profound 
acquaintance  with  mankind,  and  his  devotion 
to  all  that  good  society  holds  dear,  sprang  his 
apprehensions  for  the  existing  constitution.  Con- 
vinced that  the  natural  tendency  of  things  is  to 
an  encroachment  by  the  states  on  the  union ;  that 
their  encroachments  will  be  formidable  as  they  aug- 
ment their  wealth  and  population ;  and,  conse- 
quently, that  the  vigour  of  the  general  government 
will  be  impaired  in  a  very  near  proportion  with  the 
increase  of  its  difficulties ;  he  anticipated  the  day 
when  it  should  perish  in  the  conflict  of  local  inter- 
est and  of  local  pride.  The  divine  mercy  grant  that 
his  prediction  may  not  be  verified  ! 

But  whatever  fears  he  entertained  for  the  ulti- 
mate safety  of  the  Federal  constitution;  it  is,  in 
every  respect,  so  preferable  to  the  old  confedera- 
tion, and  its  rejection  would  have  been  so  extreme- 
lv  hazardous,  that  he  exerted  all  his  talents  and  in- 
fluence in  its  support.  In  the  papers  signed  Pub- 
lius,  which  compress  the  experience  of  ages,  and 
pour  original  light  on  the  science  of  government, 
his  genius  has  left  a  manual  for  the  future  states- 
man. And  they  will  be  read  with  deeper  interest 
when  it  is  considered  that,  eloquent  and  powerful 
as  they  are,  they  were  written  under  the  pressure 
of  business,  amidst  the  conversation  of  friends,  and 


15 


the  interrogatories  of  clients.  Alas !  the  spirit 
which  dictated  them  is  fled ;  the  hand  which  pen- 
ned them  moulders  in  death  ! 

His  voice  co-operated  with  his  pen  :  In  the  Con* 
vention  of  this  state,  which  met  to  deliberate  on  the 
•Federal  constitution,  he  was  always  heard  with  awe, 
perhaps  with  conviction;  though  not  always  with 
success.  But  when  the  crisis  arrived — when  a  vote 
was  to  determine  whether  New-York  should  retain 
or  relinquish  her  place  in  the  union ;  and  preced- 
ing occurrences  made  it  probable  that  she  would 
choose  the  worst  part  of  the  alternative,  Hamilton 
arose  in  redoubled  strength.  He  argued,  he  re- 
monstrated, he  entreated,  he  warned,  he  painted, 
till  apathy  itself  was  moved,  and  the  most  relent- 
less of  human  things,  a  preconcerted  majority,  was 
staggered  and  broken.  Truth  was  again  victorious, 
and  New-York  enrolled  herself  under  the  Federal 
standard. 

The  government  happily  erected,  was  now  to  be 
organized.  Every  eye  fixed  upon  Washington  for 
the  first  magistrate.  He  knew  it,  and  hesitated. 
The  competition  between  his  love  of  retirement,  his 
former  resolutions,  and  the  new  state  of  affairs,  held 
him  in  painful  suspense.  But  the  judgment  of 
Hamilton  preponderated,  and  he  yielded  to  the 
public  wish. 


16 


That  faithful  adviser,  whom  he  had  consulted 
upon  every  question  of  moment,  and  who  never 
gave  him  an  unsound  advice,  could  not  be  omitted 
in  the  original  administration.  The  department 
best  suited  to  him,  because  the  most  arduous,  was 
the  Treasury.  He  had  already  passed  from  the 
Warrior  into  the  Jurist,  and  he  was  now  to  appear 
in  the  new  and  very  different  character  of  a  Finan- 
cier. A  losing  commerce,  a  famished  agriculture, 
an  empty  purse,  and  prostrate  credit,  would  have 
overwhelmed  the  ordinary  man  ;  but  they  only 
brought  into  action  the  resources  of  Hamilton. 
His  plans  for  redeeming  the  reputation  of  the  coun- 
try, by  satisfying  her  creditors  ;  and  for  combining 
with  the  government  such  a  monied  interest  as 
might  facilitate  its  operations,  were  strenuously  op- 
posed. But  as  it  is  easier  to  cavil  than  to  refute, 
to  complain  than  to  amend,  the  opposition  failed. 
The  effect  was  electrical.  Commerce  revived  ;  the 
ploughshare  glittered  ;  property  recovered  its  value  ; 
credit  was  established  ;  revenue  created  ;  the  trea- 
sury filled. 

This  great  fiscal  revolution  enriched  numbers 
who  held  a  large  amount  of  the  public  paper,  pur- 
chased at  a  season  when  the  unpromising  state  of 
the  public  faith  had  set  it  afloat  in  the  market  at  a 
most  ignoble  price.  None  could  have  fairer  op- 
portunities of  acquiring  a  princely  fortune,  than  the 


financier  himself.  So  inviting  was  the  occasion, 
'  and  the  disposition  to  profit  by  it  so  little  at  vari- 
ance with  the  common  estimate  of  honourable  gain, 
that  few  supposed  it  possible  to  resist  the  tempta- 
tion. The  fact  being  presumed,  every  petty  politi- 
cian erected  himself  into  a  critic  ;  while  the  ga- 
zettes, the  streets,  the  polls  of  election,  resounded 
with  the  millions  amassed  by  the  Secretary.  It  is 
natural  that  the  idolaters  of  gold  should  treat  the 
contempt  of  it  as  a  chimera  :  But  gold  was  not  the 
idol  of  Hamilton.  He  had  formerly  relinquished 
his  own  claims  to  compensation  for  military  services, 
that  obloquy  might  not  breathe  an  impeachment  of 
his  motives  in  espousing  the  claims  of  his  brother 
officers*.  And  from  this  proud  eminence  which 
he  then  ascended,  he  was  not  now  to  be  seduced  by 
the  attractions  of  lucre.  Exquisitely  delicate  toward 
official  character,  he  touched  none  of  the  advantages 

*  Being  a  member  of  Congress,  while  the  question  of  the  commutation 
of  the  half  pay  of  the  army  for  a  sum  in  gross  was  in  debate,  delicacy,  and 
a  desire  to  be  useful  to  the  army,  by  removing  the  idea  of  his  having  an 
interest  in  the  question,  induced  him  to  write  to  the  Secretary  of  War, 
and  relinquish  his  claim  to  half  pay  ;  which,  or  the  equivalent,  he  accord- 
ingly never  received.  Neither  did  he  ever  apply  for  the  lands  allowed  by 
the  United  States  to  officers  of  his  rank.  It  is  true,  that  having  served 
through  the  latter  periods  of  the  war  on  the  general  staff  of  the  United 
States,  and  not  in  the  line  of  this  state,  he  could  not  claim  the  allowance 
as  a  matter  of  course.  But  having  before  the  war  resided  in  this  state, 
and  having  entered  the  military  career  at  the  head  of  a  company  of  Artil- 
lery raised  for  the  particular  defence  of  this  state,  he  had  better  preten- 
sions to  the  allowance  than  others  to  whom  it  was  actually  made.  Vet 
has  it  not  been  extended  to  him. 

C 


which  he  put  within  the  reach  of  others  ;  he  vested 
not  a  dollar  in  the  public  funds. 

Although  his  particular  province  was  the  Trea- 
sury, his  genius  pervaded  the  whole  administration  ; 
and  in  those  critical  events  which  crowded  each 
other,  had  a  peculiar  influence  upon  its  measures. 
The  French  revolution,  which  our  fondness  mis- 
took for  the  birth  of  virtuous  freedom,  stood  before 
him,  from  the  beginning,  in  that  hideous  form 
which  it  has  since  unmasked.  Not  to  be  duped  by 
hollow  pretences,  he  was  active  in  arresting  the 
course  of  an  insolent  minister :  and  not  to  be  biassed 
by  popular  frenzy,  he  secured  that  dignified  ground 
to  which  the  United  States  were  led  by  the  procla- 
mation of  neutrality.  Without  his  aid,  great  Wash- 
ington himself  might  have  been  borne  down  by 
the  torrent,  and  the  nation  implicated  in  war  to 
gratify  the  resentment  and  ambition  of  France. 

Internal  embarrassment  soon  added  fresh  ho- 
nours to  Hamilton  as  a  statesman.  The  western 
insurrection,  which  had  rejected  the  condescending 
proposals  of  government,  was  to  be  quelled  by  force. 
A  more  serious  question  had  not  occupied  the  cabi- 
net, as  nothing  had  hitherto  occurred  to  try  the 
strength  of  the  national  arm.  It  was  now  to  be 
ascertained  how  far  the  turbulent  might  trifle  with 
the  law  -T  and  what  reliance  they  might  place  upon 


19 


armed  opposition.  Incalculable  consequences  hung 
upon  the  precedent.  Feeble  measures  would 
have  surrendered  the  peace,  perhaps  the  life  of 
the  union ;  but  feeble  measures  were  contemplat- 
ed. That  timidity  which  shrinks  from  decision  ; 
that  economy  which  accounts  every  thing  less  pre- 
cious than  money  ;  and  that  covert  treason  which 
favoured  the  rebellion,  would  have  ordered  out  a 
detachment  that  might  have  been  met  and  de- 
feated. 

The  penetration  of  Hamilton  was  not  to  be 
eluded,  nor  his  firmness  to  be  shaken,  by  any  ar- 
gument in  support  of  so  dangerous  an  experiment. 
"  If  you  wish,"  said  he,  "  to  maintain  ihe  authori- 
**  ty  of  the  laws  ;  to  prevent  the  repetition  of  simi- 
"  lar  outrages ;  to  spare  your  treasure  and  your 
"  blood  ;  let  the  insurgents,  let  the  -continent  see4 
"  that  it  is  never  to  admit  of  a  doubt  whether  the 
"  national  will  shall  be  obeyed  or  not.  Teach 
**  them  this  lesson  by  employing  a  force  which  shall 
"  put  resistance  out  of  the  question."  This  sage 
and  humane  policy  was  adopted  by  Washington  ; 
and  the  rebellion  disappeared  without  effusion  of 
blood. 

After  the  restoration  of  order,  Mr.  Hamilton 
remained  but  a  short  time  in  office.  His  numerous 
services  gave  him,  perhaps,  a  right  to  retire  when 


20 


the  state  might  be  safely  intrusted  to  other  hands. 
But  one  reason  of  his  retreat  deserves  particular 
notice,  because  it  involves  a  mischievous  and  dis- 
reputable principle.  A  general  error  in  popular 
systems  is  a  frugality  which  computes  nothing  but 
pence.  The  affairs  of  a  nation,  however,  cannot 
be  ably  conducted  without  able  and  independent 
men.  But  such  men,  in  a  country  where  the  de- 
mand for  active  talent  is  greater  than  the  sup- 
ply, will  always  hold  their  fortunes  in  their  own 
hand  :  nor  are  we  to  expect  that  they  will  sub- 
mit to  the  toils  and  responsibility  of  public  office 
with  a  support  utterly  disproportioned  both  to  their 
station  and  their  means  of  providing  for  them- 
selves. No  people  is  in  jeopardy  from  the  liberality 
of  their  civil  list :  But  when  this  is  niggardly,  able 
men  withdraw  in  succession,  and  the  state  falls,  at 
length,  into  the  hands  of  the  weak  or  the  wicked, 
whobe  want  of  capacity,  or  of  integrity,  squanders 
on  one  occasion,  the  public  revenue,  and  on  ano- 
ther, overloads  it  with  the  expenses  of  war.  The 
last  of  these  consequences  God  forbid  we  should 
experience ;  the  first  was  exemplified  in  the  histo- 
ry of  Hamilton.  He  entered  into  public  service 
with  property  of  his  own,  the  well-earned  reward 
of  professional  talent ;  he  continued  in  it,  till  his 
little  funds  were  dissipated  ;  and  left  it,  to  get  bread 
for  a  suffering  family.  It  was  surely  enough  that 
he  had  impoverished  himself  while  he  was  enrich- 


21  * 

ing  the  commonwealth  ;  but  it  was  beyond  mea- 
sure insulting  to  charge  him,  under  such  circum- 
stances, with  invading  the  public  purse.  No- 
body believed  the  charge  ;  and  least  of  all,  the  slan- 
derers who  brought  it.  But  Washington  was 
vilified,  and  how  should  Hamilton  escape  !  The 
virtuous  saw,  with  regret,  that  he  stooped  to 
repel  it ;  and  with  anguish,  that  in  regard  to  a  pri- 
vate aberration,  his  defence  contained  a  disclosure 
of  which  they  admired  the  ingenuousness,  but  de- 
plored the  occasion,  while  they  wept  over  a  spot  in 
a  blaze  of  excellence. 

Large  and  lucrative  practice  at  the  bar  promis- 
ed to  replace  his  pecuniary  sacrifices  in  official  life. 
But  a  new  distress  of  his  country  drew  him  again 
from  his  professional  engagements.  Our  remon- 
strances against  the  injuries  committed  by  France, 
had  proved  unavailing  ;  and  her  rude  and  humiliat- 
ing requisitions  had  fired  the  national  spirit.  Lit- 
tle was  to  be  expected  from  the  generosity,  and 
less  from  the  rectitude,  of  a  government  framed  up- 
on the  maxims  of  the  new  philosophy.  Tribute  or 
the  sword,  was  the  only  choice  of  the  States,  and  it 
would  have  been  a  libel  on  the  war  of  independence 
to  have  hesitated  a  moment.  A  provisional  army, 
with  Washington  at  their  head,  was  summoned 
into  the  field  :  but  the  condition  on  which  he  sus- 


12 

pended  the  acceptance  of  his  own  commission,  was 
that  Hamilton  should  be  his  associate.  The  end 
of  this  stipulation  could  not  be  misunderstood.  He 
not  only  designed  to  have  his  age  relieved  frorri 
some  heavy  cares  by  his  younger  friend  ;  but,  in  the 
event  of  his  own  decease,  to  leave  the  sword  of 
America  in  the  hands  of  a  man,  whom  nothing 
could  overreach,  nothing  intimidate,  nothing  cor- 
rupt. 

Subsequent  adjustment  of  our  dispute  with  the 
French  Republic,  was  accompanied  with  the  dis- 
charge of  the  provisional  army,  and  with  Hamil- 
ton's second  return  to  his  profession.  Here,  un- 
wearied in  diligence,  and  unrivalled  in  fame,  he  fill- 
ed up  the  residue,  (ah,  too  transient  !)  of  his  invalu- 
able days.  But,  as  you  have  truly  been  told,  though 
he  had  withdrawn  from  public  life,  he  was  not  an 
hour  absent  from  the  public  service.  It  did  not  be- 
long to  a  man  absorbed  in  his  country's  welfare,  to 
look  with  indifference  on  the  course  of  her  affairs. 
Office  he  wanted  none.  None  in  the  gift  of  the 
nation  would  have  moved  him  from  his  purpose. 
He  reserved  himself  for  crises  which,  he  feared 
are  approaching  ;  such  crises,  especially,  as  may  af- 
fect the  integrity  of  the  union.  How  he  was  alarm- 
ed by  every  thing  which  pointed  at  its  dissolution ; 
how  indignant  were  his  feelings  and  language  on 


23 

that  ungracious  topic  ;  how  stern  and  steady  his 
hostility  to  every  influence  which  only  leaned  to- 
ward the  project,  they  will  attest  with  whom  he 
was  in  habits  of  communication.  In  every  shape, 
it  encountered  his  reprobation  as  unworthy  of  a 
statesman,  as  fatal  to  America,  and  desirable  to  the 
desperate  alone.  One  of  his  primary  objects  was 
to  consolidate  the  efforts  of  good  men  in  retarding 
a  calamity  which,  after  all,  they  may  be  unable  to 
avert ;  but  which  no  partial  nor  temporary  policy 
should  induce  them  to  accelerate.  To  these  senti- 
ments must  be  traced  his  hatred  of  continental  fac- 
tions ;  his  anxiety  for  the  federal  constitution,  al- 
though, in  his  judgment,  too  slight  for  the  pressure 
which  it  has  to  sustain  ;  his  horror  of  every  attempt 
to  sap  its  foundation  or  loosen  its  fabric  ;  his  zeal  to 
consecrate  it  in  the  affections  of  his  fellow-citizens, 
that  if  it  fall  at  last,  they  may  be  pure  from  the 
guilt  of  its  overthrow — an  overthrow,  which  may 
be  accomplished  in  an  hour,  but  of  which  the  woes 
may  be  entailed  upon  ages  to  come. 

With  such  dignified  policy  he  joined  the  most 
intense  application  to  his  professional  duties.  But 
the  description  of  these  is  not  my  province.  How 
he  resolved  the  most  intricate  cases  ;  how  he  pur- 
sued general  principles  through  their  various  modi- 
fications ;  how  he  opened  the  fountains  of  justice  » 


24 

how  he  revered  the  rights  of  property  ;  how  he  sig- 
nalized himself  in  protecting  the  defenceless  ;  how 
judges,  and  jurors,  and  counsel,  and  audience,  hung 
on  his  accents  ;  let  them  declare  who  have  intrust- 
ed their  fortunes  to  his  hand  :  Let  them  declare 
who  have  wondered  that  any  man  should  be  thought 
great  while  Hamilton  appeared  at  the  Ameri- 
can bar. 

But  enumerations  were  endless.  He  was  born 
to  be  great.  Whoever  was  second,  Hamilton 
must  be  first.  To  his  stupendous  and  versatile 
mind  no  investigation  was  difficult — no  subject  pre- 
sented which  he  did  not  illuminate.  Superiority, 
in  some  particular,  belongs  to  thousands.  Pre-emi- 
nence, in  whatever  he  chose  to  undertake,  was  the 
prerogative  of  Hamilton.  No  fixed  criterion  could 
be  applied  to  his  talents.  Often  has  their  display 
been  supposed  to  have  reached  the  limit  of  human 
effort ;  and  the  judgment  stood  firm  till  set  aside  by 
himself.  When  a  cause  of  new  magnitude  required 
new  exertion,  he  rose,  he  towered,  he  soared  ;  sur- 
passing himself,  as  he  surpassed  others.  Then  was 
nature  tributary  to  his  eloquence  !  Then  was  felt 
his  despotism  over  the  heart  !  Touching,  at  his 
pleasure,  every  string  of  pity  or  terror,  of  indigna- 
tion or  grief ;  he  melted,  he  soothed,  he  roused,  he 
agitated  ;  alternately  gentle  as  the  dews,  and  aw- 


25 

ful  as  the  thunder.  Yet,  great  as  he  was  in  the 
eyes  of  the  world,  he  was  greater  in  the  eyes  of  those 
with  whom  he  was  most  conversant.  The  great- 
ness of  most  men,  like  objects  seen  through  a  mist, 
diminishes  with  the  distance  :  but  Hamilton,  like 
a  tower  seen  afar  off  under  a  clear  sky,  rose  in 
grandeur  and  sublimity  with  every  step  of  approach. 
Familiarity  with  him  was  the  parent  of  veneration. 
Over  these  matchless  talents  Probity  threw  her 
brightest  lustre.  Frankness,  suavity,  tenderness, 
benevolence,  breathed  through  their  exercise.  And 
to  his  family  ! — but  he  is  gone. — That  noble  heart 
beats  no  more  :  that  eye  of  fire  is  dimmed  ;  and 
sealed  are  those  oracular  lips.  Americans,  the  se- 
renest  beam  of  your  glory  is  extinguished  in  the 
tomb  ! 

Fathers,  friends,  countrymen !  the  death  of 
Hamilton  is  no  common  affliction.  The  loss  of 
distinguished  men  is,  at  all  times,  a  calamity ;  but 
the  loss  of  such  a  man,  at  such  a  time,  and  in  the 
very  meridian  of  his  usefulness,  is  singularly  por- 
tentous. When  Washington  was  taken,  Ha- 
milton was  left — but  Hamilton  is  taken,  and  we 
have  no  Washington.  We  have  not  such  another 
man  to  die  !  Washington  and  Hamilton  in  five 
years  ! — Bereaved  America  !  Thou  art  languishing 
beneath  the  divine  displeasure.    Let  this  truth  a\v- 

T> 


26 

fully  impress  my  hearers,  that  when  the  Almighty 
God  is  about  to  "  shake  terribly  the  earth  when 
Jie  has  bidden  scourge  to  follow  scourge,  and  ven- 
geance to  press  on  vengeance,  one  of  his  means  is 
to  deprive  a  nation  of  their  ablest  men.  Thus  bereft 
of  counsel,  their  affairs  run  into  confusion,  and 
bring  forth  misery.  I  invent  nothing ;  I  only  re- 
peat the  admonition  of  holy  writ :  "  For  behold 
"  the  Lord,  the  Lord  of  hosts  doth  take  away  the 
"  mighty  man,  and  the  man  of  war,  the  judge,  and 
"  the  prophet,  and  the  prudent,  and  the  ancient, 
"  the  captain  of  fifty,  and  the  honourable  man,  and 
"  the  counsellor,  and  the  cunning  artificer,  and  the 
"  eloquent  orator."  The  disastrous  consequences 
are,  impotent  governors,  and  ruthless  anarchy.  For 
the  prophet  continues,  "  I  will  give  children  to  be 
"  their  princes,  and  babes  shall  rule  over  them. 
"  And  the  people  shall  be  oppressed,  every  one  by 
"  another,  and  every  one  by  his  neighbour ;  the 
"  child  shall  behave  himself  proudly  against  the  an- 
"  cient,  and  the  base  against  the  honourable." 

Fathers,  friends,  countrymen  !  the  grave  of  Ha- 
milton speaks.  It  charges  me  to  remind  you  that 
he  fell  a  victim,  not  to  disease  nor  accident  j  not  to 
the  fortune  of  glorious  warfare ;  but,  how  shall  I 
utter  it  ?  to  a  custom  which  has  no  origin  but  su- 
perstition, no  aliment  but  depravity,  no  reason  but 


in  madness.  Alas  !  that  he  should  thus  expose  his 
precious  life.  This  was  his  error.  A  thousand 
bursting  hearts  reiterate,  this  was  his  error.  Shall 
I  apologize  ?  I  am  forbidden  by  his  living  protesta- 
tions, by  his  dying  regrets,  by  his  wasted  blood. 
Shall  a  solitary  act  into  which  he  was  betrayed  and 
dragged,  have  the  authority  of  a  precedent  ?  The 
plea  is  precluded  by  the  long  decisions  of  his  under- 
standing, by  the  principles  of  his  conscience,  and 
by  the  reluctance  of  his  heart.  Ah  !  when  will  our 
morals  be  purified,  and  an  imaginary  honour  cease  to 
cover  the  most  pestilent  of  human  passions  ?  My 
appeal  is  to  military  men.  Your  honour  is  sacred. 
Listen.  Is  it  honourable  to  enjoy  the  esteem  of 
the  wise  and  good  ?  The  wise  and  good  turn  with 
disgust  from  the  man  who  lawlessly  aims  at  his 
neighbour's  life.  Is  it  honourable  to  serve  your 
country  ?  That  man  cruelly  injures  her,  who,  from 
private  pique,  calls  his  fellow-citizen  into  the  du- 
bious field.  Is  fidelity  honourable  ?  That  man  for- 
swears his  faith,  who  turns  against  the  bowels  of 
his  countrymen,  weapons  put  into  his  hand  for  their 
defence.  Are  generosity,  humanity,  sympathy,  ho- 
nourable ?  That  man  is  superlatively  base,  who 
mingles  the  tears  of  the  widow  and  orphan,  with 
the  blood  of  a  husband  and  father.  Do  refinement, 
and  courtesy,  and  benignity,  entwine  with  the 
laurels  of  the  brave  ?  The  blot  is  yet  to  be  wiped 


i 

28 

from  the  soldier's  name,  that  he  cannot  treat  his 
brother  with   the  decorum  of  a  gentleman,  un- 
less the  pistol  or  the  dagger  be  every  moment  at  his 
heart.    Let  the  votaries  of  honour  now  look  at  their 
deeds.     Let  them  compare  their  doctrine  with 
this  horrible  comment.    Ah  !  what  avails  it  to  a 
distracted  nation  that  Hamilton  was  murdered  for 
a  punctilio  of  honour  ?  My  flesh  shivers  !   Is  this, 
indeed,  our  state  of  society  ?  Are  transcendent 
worth  and  talent  to  be  a  capital  indictment  before 
the  tribunal  of  ambition  r  Is  the  Angel  of  Death  to 
record,  for  sanguinary  retribution,  every  word  which 
the  collision  of  political  opinion  may  extort  from  a 
political  man  ?  Are  integrity  and  candour  to  be  at 
the  mercy  of  the  assassin  ?  And  systematic  crime  to 
trample  underfoot,  or  smite  into  the  grave,  all  that 
is  yet  venerable  in  our  humbled  land  ?  My  coun- 
trymen, the  land  is  defiled  with  blood  unrighteously 
shed.    Its  cry,  disregarded  on  earth,  has  gone  up  to 
the  throne  of  God  ;  and  this  day  does  our  punish- 
ment reveal  our  sin.    It  is  time  for  us  to  awake. 
The  voice  of  moral  virtue,  the  voice  of  domestic 
•    alarm,  the  voice  of  the  fatherless  and  widow,  the 
voice  of  a  nation's  wrong,  the  voice  of  Hamilton's 
blood,  the  voice  of  impending  judgment,  calls  for  a 
remedy.    At  this  hour  Heaven's  high  reproof  is 
sounding  from  Maine  to  Georgia,  and  from  the 
shores  of  the  Atlantic  to  the  banks  of  the  Missis- 


29 

sippi.  If  we  refuse  obedience,  every  drop  of  blood 
spilled  in  single  combat,  will  lie  at  our  door,  and 
will  be  recompensed  when  our  cup  is  full.  We 
have,  then,  our  choice,  either  to  coerce  iniquity,  or 
prepare  for  desolation  ;  and  in  the  mean  time,  to 
make  our  nation,  though  infant  in  years,  yet  ma- 
ture in  vice,  the  scorn  and  the  abhorrence  of  civi- 
lized man  ! 

Fathers,  friends,  countrymen  !  the  dying  breath 
of  Hamilton  recommended  to  you  the  Chris- 
tian's hope.  His  single  testimony  outweighs  all 
the  cavils  of  the  sciolist,  and  all  the  jeers  of  the 
profane.  Who  will  venture  to  pronounce  a  fable, 
that  doctrine  of  "  life  and  immortality,"  which  his 
profound  and  irradiating  mind  embraced  as  the  truth 
of  God  ?  When  you  are  to  die,  you  will  find  no 
source  of  peace  but  in  the  faith  of  Jesus.  Cultivate 
for  your  present  repose  and  your  future  consolation, 
what  our  departed  friend  declared  to  be  the  support 
of  his  expiring  moments  : — "  A  tender  reliance  on 
"  the  mercies  of  the  Almighty,  through  the  merits 
"  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 

Hamilton  !  we  will  cherish  thy  memory,  we 
will  embalm  thy  fame  !  Fare  thee  well,  thou  un- 
paralleled man,  farewell — forever  ' 


APPENDIX. 


NO.  I. 

GENERAL  HAMILTON'S  WILL. 

In  the  name  of  God,  Amen.  I,  ALEXANDER  HAMIL- 
TON, of  the  city  of  New- York,  Counsellor  at  Law,  do  make  this 
my  last  Will  and  Testament,  as  follows  : 

First.  I  appoint  John  B.  Church,  Nicholas  Fish,  and  Na- 
thaniel Pendleton,  of  the  city  aforesaid,  Esquires,  to  be  Ex- 
ecutors and  Trustees  of  this  my  Will  ;  and  I  devise  to  them,  their 
heirs  and  assigns,  as  joint  tenants  and  not  as  tenants  in  common, 
all  my  estate  real  and  personal  whatsoever,  and  wheresoever,  upon 
trust  at  their  discretion,  to  sell  and  dispose  of  the  same,  at  such 
time  and  times,  in  such  manner,  and  upon  such  terms,  as  they 
the  survivors  and  survivor  shall  think  fit ;  and  out  of  the  proceeds 
to  pay  all  the  debts  which  I  shall  owe  at  the  time  of  my  decease  ; 
in  whole,  if  the  fund  be  sufficient ;  proportionably,  if  it  shall  be 
insufficient  ;  and  the  residue,  if  any  there  shall  be,  to  pay  and 
deliver  to  my  excellent  and  dear  wife,  Elizabeth  Hamilton. 

Though,  if  it  should  please  God  to  spare  my  life,  I  may  look 
for  a  considerable  surplus  out  of  my  present  property  :  yet  if  he 
should  speedily  call  me  to  the  eternal  world,  a  forced  sale,  as  is 
usual,  may  possibly  render  it  insufficient  to  satisfy  my  debts.  I 
pray  God  that  something  may  remain  for  the  maintenance  and 
education  of  my  dear  wife  and  children.  But  should  it  on  the 
contrary  happen,  that  there  is  not  enough  for  the  payment  of  my 
debts,  I  entreat  my  dear  children,  if  they,  or  any  of  them,  should 
ever  be  able,  to  make  up  the  deficiency.  I,  without  hesitation, 
commit  to  their  delicacy  a  wish  dictated  by  my  own. — Though 
conscious  that  I  have  too  far  sacrificed  the  interests  of  my  family 
to  public  avocations,  and  on  this  account  have  the  less  claim  to 
burthen  my  children,  yet  I  trust  in  their  magnanimity  to  appre- 


32 


ciate  as  they  ought,  this  my  request.  In  so  unfavourable  an 
event  of  things,  the  support  of  their  dear  mother,  with  the 
most  respectful  and  tender  attention,  is  a  duty,  all  the  sacredness 
of  which  they  will  feel.  Probably  her  own  patrimonial  resources 
will  preserve  her  from  indigence.  But  in  all  situations  they  are 
charged  to  bear  in  mind,  that  she  has  been  to  them  the  most  de- 
voted and  best  of  mothers. 

In  testimony  whereof  I  have  hereunto  subscribed  my  hand, 
the  ninth  day  of  July,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  four. 

ALEXANDER  HAMILTON. 

Signed,  Sealed,  Published  and  Declared,  as  and  for  his  last  Will 
and  Testament,  in  our  presence,  who  have  subscribed  the 
same  in  his  presence,  the  words  John  B.  Church  being  above 
interlined. 

DOMINICK  F.  BLAKE, 
GRAHAM  BURRIL, 
THEO.  B.  VALLEAU. 

New-York,  Surrogate's  Office,  ss. — July  16M,  1804. 

I  do  hereby  certify  the  preceding  to  be  a  true  copy  of  the 
original  Will  of  Alexander  Hamilton,  deceased,  now  on  file  at 
my  office. 

SYLVANUS  MILLER,  Surrogate. 


NO.  II. 

The  following  Paper,  in  the  hand  writing  of  General  Hamilton, 
was  inclosed  with  his  Will  and  some  other  fiafiers  in  a  packet  ad- 
dressed to  one  of  the  Executors,  which  was  of  course  not  to  have 
been  delivered  but  in  case  of  the  melanclioly  event  that  has  happened. 

ON  my  expected  interview  with  Col.  Burr,  I  think  it  proper 
to  make  some  remarks  explanatory  of  my  conduct,  motives,  and 
views. 


33 


I  was  certainly  desirous  of  avoiding  this  interview,  for  the 
most  cogent  reasons. 

1.  My  religious  and  moral  principles  are  strongly  opposed  to 
the  practice  of  duelling,  and  it  would  ever  give  me  pain  to  be 
obliged  to  shed  the  blood  of  a  fellow  creature  in  a  private  combat, 
forbidden  by  the  laws. 

2.  My  wife  and  children  are  extremely  dear  to  me,  and  my 
life  is  of  the  utmost  importance  to  them,  in  various  views. 

5.  I  feel  a  sense  of  obligation  towards  my  creditors,  who,  in 
case  of  accident  to  me,  by  the  forced  sale  of  my  property,  may 
be  in  some  degree  sufferers.  I  did  not  think  myself  at  liberty, 
as  a  man  of  probity,  lightly  to  expose  them  to  this  hazard. 

4.  I  am  conscious  of  no  ill  will  to  Col.  Burr,  distinct  from  po- 
litical opposition,  which,  as  I  trust,  has  proceeded  from  pure 
and  upright  motives. 

Lastly.  I  shall  hazard  much,  and  can  possibly  gain  nothing, 
by  the  issue  of  the  interview. 

But  it  was,  as  I  conceive,  impossible  for  me  to  avoid  it.  There 
were  intrinsic  difficulties  in  the  thing,  and  artificial  embarrass- 
ments, from  the  manner  of  proceeding  on  the  part  of  Col.  Burr* 

Intrinsic,  because  it  is  not  to  be  denied,  that  my  animadver- 
sions on  the  political  principles,  character,  and  views  of  Col.  Burr, 
have  been  extremely  severe  ;  and  on  different  occasions  I,  in 
common  with  many  others,  have  made  very  unfavourable  criti- 
cisms on  particular  instances  of  the  private  conduct  of  this  gen- 
tleman. 

In  proportion  as  these  impressions  were  entertained  with  sin- 
cerity, and  uttered  with  motives  and  for  purposes  which  might 
appear  to  me  commendable,  would  be  the  difficulty  (until  they 
could  be  removed  by  evidence  of  their  being  erroneous)  of  expla- 
nation or  apology.  The  disavowal  required  of  me  by  Col.  Burr, 
in  a  general  and  indefinite  form,  was  out  of  my  power,  if  it  had 
really  been  proper  for  me  to  submit  to  be  so  questioned  ;  but  I 

E 


34 


was  sincerely  of  opinion  lhat  this  could  not  be  ;  and  in  this  opi- 
nion I  was  confirmed  by  that  of  a  very  moderate  and  judicious 
friend  whom  I  consulted.  Besides  that,  Col.  Burr  appeared  tome 
to  assume,  in  the  first  instance,  a  tone  unnecessarily  peremptory 
and  menacing ;  and  in  the  second,  positively  offensive.  Yet  I 
wished,  as  far  as  might  be  practicable,  to  leave  a  door  open  to 
accommodation. — This,  I  think,  will  be  inferred  from  the  writ- 
ten communications  made  by  me  and  by  my  directions,  and 
would  be  confirmed  by  the  conversations  between  Mr.  Van  Ness 
and  myself,  which  arose  out  of  the  subject. 

I  am  not  sure  whether,  under  all  the  circumstances,  I  did  not 
go  further  in  the  attempt  to  accommodate,  than  a  punctilious  de- 
licacy will  justify.  If  so,  I  hope  the  motives  I  have  stated  will 
excuse  me. 

It  is  not  my  design,  by  what  I  have  said,  to  affix  any  odium 
on  the  conduct  of  Col.  Burr  in  this  case — He  doubtless  has  heard 
of  animadversions  of  mine  which  bore  very  hard  upon  him  ;  and 
it  is  probable  that,  as  usual,  they  were  accompanied  with  some 
falshoods.  He  may  have  supposed  himself  under  the  necessity 
of  acting  as  he  has  done — I  hope  the  grounds  of  his  proceeding 
have  been  such  as  ought  to  satisfy  his  own  conscience. 

I  trust,  at  the  same  time,  that  the  world  will  do  me  the  jus- 
tice to  believe,  that  I  have  not  censured  him  on  light  grounds, 
nor  from  unworthy  inducements.  I  certainly  have  had  strong 
reasons  for  what  I  may  have  said  ;  though  it  is  possible  that,  in 
some  particulars,  I  may  have  been  influenced  by  misconstruc- 
tion or  misinformation.  It  is  also  my  ardent  wish  that  I  may  have 
been  more  mistaken  than  I  think  I  have  been  ;  and  that  he,  by 
his  future  conduct,  may  show  himself  worthy  of  all  confidence 
and  esteem,  and  prore  an  ornament  and  blessing  to  the  country. 

-  As  well  because  it  is  possible  that  I  may  have  injured  Col. 
Burr,  however  convinced  myself  that  my  opinions  and  declara- 
tions have  been  well  founded,  as  from  my  general  principles  and 
temper  in  relation  to  similar  affairs  ;  I  have  resolved,  if  our  in- 
terview is  conducted  in  the  usual  manner,  and  it  pleases  God  to 
give  me  the  opportunity,  to  reserve  and  throw  away  my  first  fire, 
and  I  liave  thoughts  even  of  reserving  my  second  fire — and  thus 
giving  a  double  opportunity  to  Col.  Burr  to  pause  and  reflect. 


25 


It  is  not,  however,  my  intention  to  enter  into  any  explanations 
on  the  ground.  Apology,  from  principle,  I  hope,  rather  than 
pride,  is  out  of  the  question. 

To  those  who,  with  me,  abhorring  the  practice  of  duelling, 
may  think  that  I  ought  on  no  account  to  have  added  to  the  num- 
ber of  bad  examples,  I  answer,  that  my  relative  situation,  as  well 
in  public  as  private,  enforcing  all  the  considerations  which  con- 
stitute what  men  of  the  world  denominate  honour,  imposed  on 
me  (as  I  thought)  a  peculiar  necessity  not  to  decline  the  call. 
The  ability  to  be  in  future  useful,  whether  in  resisting  mischief 
or  effecting  good,,  in  those  prises  of  our  public  affairs,  which 
seem  likely  to  happen,  would  probably  be  inseparable  from  a 
conformity  with  public  prejudice  in  this  particular. 

A.  H. 


NO.  III. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  Evening  Post. 

Thursday  Evening,  July  12. 

Mr.  Coleman, 

THE  public  mind  being  extremely  agitated  by  the  melancholy- 
fate  of  that  great  man,  Alexander  Hamilton,  I  have  thought 
it  would  be  grateful  to  my  fellow  citizens,  would  provide  against 
misrepresentation,  and,  perhaps,  be  conducive  to  the  advance- 
ment of  the  cause  of  religion,  were  I  to  give  a  narrative  of  some 
facts  which  have  fallen  under  my  own  observation,  during  the 
time  which  elapsed  between  the  fatal  duel  and  his  departure  out 
of  this  world. 

Yesterday  morning,  immediately  after  he  was  brought  from 
Hoboken  to  the  house  of  Mr.  Bayard,  at  Greenwich,  a  mes- 
sage was  sent  informing  me  of  the  sad  event,  accompanied  by  a 
request  from  General  Hamilton,  that  I  would  come  to  him  for 
the  purpose  of  administering  the  Holy  Communion.  I  went;  but 
being  desirous  to  afford  time  for  serious  reflection,  and  conceiv- 
ing that  under  existing  circumstances,  it  would  be  right  and  pro- 


per  to  avoid  every  appearance  of  precipitancy  in  performing  one 
of  the  most  solemn  offices  of  our  religion,  I  did  not  then  comply 
with  his  desire.  At  one  o'clock  1  was  again  called  on  to  visit 
him.  Upon  my  entering  the  room  and  approaching  his  bed,  with 
the  utmost  calmness  and  composure  he  said,  "  My  dear  Sir,  you 
perceive  my  unfortunate  situation,  and  no  doubt  have  been  made 
acquainted  with  the  circumstances  which  led  to  it.  It  is  my  de- 
sire to  receive  the  Communion  at  your  hands.  I  hope  you  will 
not  conceive  there  is  any  impropriety  in  my  request."  He  added, 
*'  It  has  for  some  time  past  been  the  wish  of  my  heart,  and  it 
was  my  intention  to  take  an  early  opportunity  of  uniting  myself 
to  the  church,  by  the  reception  of  that  holy  ordinance."  I  ob- 
served to  him,  that  he  must  be  very  sensible  of  the  delicate  and 
trying  situation  in  which  I  was  then  placed  ;  that  however  desir- 
ous I  might  be  to  afford  consolation  to  a  fellow  mortal  in  distress  ; 
still,  it  was  my  duty,  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  to  hold  up 
the  law  of  God  as  paramount  to  all  other  law  ;  and  that,  there- 
fore, under  the  influence  of  such  sentiments,  I  must  unequivo- 
cally condemn  the  practice  which  had  brought  him  to  his  present 
unhappy  condition.  He  acknowledged  the  propriety  of  these 
sentiments,  and  declared  that  he  viewed  the  late  transaction  with 
sorrow  and  contrition.  I  then  asked  him,  u  Should  it  please 
God,  to  restore  you  to  health,  Sir,  will  you  never  be  again  en- 
gaged in  a  similar  transaction  ?  and  will  you  employ  all  your 
influence  in  society  to  discountenance  this  barbarous  custom  ?* 
His  answer  was,  "  That,  Sir,  is  my  deliberate  intention." 

I  proceeded  to  converse  with  himonthe  subject  of  his  receiv- 
ing the  Communion  ;  and  told  him  that  with  respect  to  the  qua- 
lifications of  those  who  wished  to  become  partakers  of  that  holy 
ordinance,  my  inquiries  could  not  be  made  in  language  more 
expressive  than  that  which  was  used  by  our  Church. — "  Do  you 
sincerely  repent  of  your  sins  past  ?  Have  you  a  lively  faith  in 
God's  mercy  through  Christ,  with  a  thankful  remembrance  of 
the  death  of  Christ  ?  And  are  you  disposed  to  live  in  love  and 
charity  with  all  men  ?"  He  lifted  up  his  hands  and  said,  "4With 
the  utmost  sincerity  of  heart  I  can  answer  those  questions  in  the 
affirmative — I  have  no  ill  will  against  Col.  Burr.  I  met  him 
with  a  fixed  resolution  to  do  him  no  harm — I  forgive  all  that 
happened."  I  then  observed  to  him,  that  the  terrors  of  the  di- 
vine law  were  to  be  announced  to  the  obdurate  and  impenitent : 


S7 

but  that  the  consolations  of  the  Gospel  were  to  be  offered  to  the 
humble  and  contrite  heart :  that  I  had  no  reason  to  doubt  his 
sincerity,  and  would  proceed  immediately  to  gratify  his  wishes. 
The  Communion  was  then  administered,  which  he  received  with 
great  devotion,  and  his  heart  afterwards  appeared  to  be  perfect- 
ly at  rest.  I  saw  him  again  this  morning,  when,  with  his  last 
faultering  words,  he  expressed  a  strong  confidence  in  the  mercy 
of  God  through  the  intercession  of  the  Redeemer.  I  remained 
with  him  until  2  o'clock  this  afternoon,  when  death  closed  the 
awful  scene — he  expired  without  a  struggle,  and  almost  with- 
out a  groan. 

By  reflecting  on  this  melancholy  event,  let  the  humble  be- 
liever be  encouraged  ever  to  hold  fast  that  precious  faith  which 
is  the  only  source  of  true  consolation  in  the  last  extremity  of  na- 
ture. Let  the  infidel  be  persuaded  to  abandon  his  opposition  to 
that  gospel  which  the  strong,  inquisitive,  and  comprehensive 
mind  of  a  Hamilton  embraced,  in  his  last  moments,  as  the 
truth  from  heaven.  Let  those  who  are  disposed  to  justify  the 
practice  of  duelling,  be  induced,  by  this  simple  narrative,  to 
view  with  abhorrence  that  custom  which  has  occasioned  an  irre- 
parable loss  to  a  worthy  and  most  afflicted  family  :  which  has 
deprived  his  friends  of  a  beloved  companion,  his  profession  of 
one  of  its  brightest  ornaments,  and  his  country  of  a  great  states- 
man and  a  real  patriot. 

With  great  respect, 

I  remain  your  friend  and  servant, 

BENJAMIN  MOORE. 


NO.  IV. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  Commercial  Advertiser. 

Sir, 

HAVING  read,  in  your  paper  of  the  1 6th,  a  very  imperfect 
account  of  my  conversation  with  General  Hamilton,  the  day  pre- 
vious to  his  decease,  I  judge  it  my  duty  to  lay  the  following  nar- 
rative before  the  public 


3fl 


On  the  morning  of  Wednesday,  the  1 1th  inst.  shortly  after 
the  rumour  of  the  General's  injury  had  created  an  alarm  in  the 
city,  a  note  from  Dr.  Post  informed  me  that "  he  was  extremely 
ill  at  Mr.  Wm.  Bayard's,  and  expressed  a  particular  desire  to 
see  me  as  soon  as  possible."    I  went  immediately.    The  ex- 
change of  melancholy  salutation,  on  entering  the  General's  apart- 
ment, was  succeeded  by  a  silence  which  he  broke  by  saying,  that 
he  "  had  been  anxious  to  see  me,  and  have  the  sacrament  adminis- 
tered to  him  ;  and  that  this  was  still  his  wish."    I  replied,  that 
u  it  gave  me  unutterable  pain  to  receive  from  him  any  request  to 
which  I  could  not  accede  :  that,  in  the  present  instance,  a  com- 
pliance was  incompatible  with  all  my  obligations ;  as  it  is  a  prin- 
ciple in  our  churches  never  to  administer  the  lord's  Supper  pri- 
vately to  any  person  under  any  circumstances.''    He  urged  me 
no  further.    I  then  remarked  to  him,  that,  "  the  Holy  Commu- 
nion is  an  exhibition  and  pledge  of  the  mercies  which  the  Son  of 
God  has  purchased  ;  that  the  absence  of  the  sign  does  not  exclude 
from  the  mercies  signified  ;  which  were  accessible  to  him  by 
faith  in  their  gracious  author."  "  I  am  aware,"  said  he,  "  of  that. 
It  is  only  as  a  sign  that  I  wanted  it."    A  short  pause  ensued.  I 
resumed  the  discourse,  by  observing  that "  I  had  nothing  to  ad- 
dress to  him  in  his  affliction,  but  that  same  gosfielof  the  grace  of 
God,  which  it  is  my  office  to  preach  co  the  most  obscure  and  illi- 
terate :  that  in  the  sight  of  God  all  men  are  on  a  level,  as  all  have 
sinned,  and  come  short  of  his  glory  ;  and  that  they  must  apply  to 
him  for  pardon  and  life,  as  sinners,  whose  only  refuge  is  in  his 
grace  reigning  by  righteousness  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 
"  I  perceive  it  to  be  so,"  said  he  ;  "  I  am  a  sinner :  I  look  to  his 
mercy."    I  then  adverted  to  "  the  infinite  merit  of  the  Redeem- 
er, as  the  firo/iitiation  for  sin,  the  sole  ground  of  our  acceptance 
with  God  ;  the  sole  channel  of  his  favour  to  us  ;  and  cited  the 
following  passages  of  scripture : — There  is  no  other  name  given 
under  heaven  among  men,  whereby  we  must  be  saved,  but  the  name 
of  Jesus.    He  is  able  to  save  them  to  the  uttermost  who  come  unto 
God  by  him,  seeing  he  ever  liveth  to  make  intercession  for  them.  The 
blood  of  Jesus  Christ  cleanseth  from  all  sin."    This  last  passage  in- 
troduced the  affair  of  the  duel,  on  which  I  reminded  the  General, 
that  he  was  not  to  be  instructed  as  to  its  moral  aspect,  that  the 
precious  blood  of  Christ  was  as  effectual  and  as  necessary  to  wash 
away  the  transgression  which  had  involved  him  in  suffering,  as 
any  other  transgression  ;  and  that  he  must  there,  and  there  alone, 


39 


seek  peace  for  his  conscience,  and  a  hope  that  should  "  not  make 
him  as/iamed."  He  assented,  with  strong  emotion,  to  these  repre- 
sentations, and  declared  his  abhorrence  of  the  whole  transaction. 
"  It  was  always,"  added  he,  "  against  my  principles.  I  used 
every  expedient  to  avoid  the  interview  ;  but  I  have  found,  for 
some  time  past,  that  my  life  must  be  exposed  to  that  man.  I 
went  to  the  field  determined  not  to  take  his  life."  He  repeated 
his  disavowal  of  al!  intention  to  hurt  Mr.  Burr  ;  the  anguish  of 
his  mind  in  recollecting  what  had  passed  ;  and  his  humble  hope 
of  forgiveness  from  his  God.  I  recurred  to  the  topic  of  the  divine 
compassions  ;  the  freedom  of  pardon  in  the  Redeemer  Jesus  to 
perishing  sinners.  "  That  grace,  my  dear  General,  which  brings 
salvation,  is  rich,  rich" — "  Yes,"  interrupted  he,  "  it  is  rich  grace." 
"  And  on  that  grace,"  continued  I,  "  a  sinner  has  the  highest  en- 
couragement to  repose  his  confidence,  because  it  is  tendered  to 
him  upon  the  surest  foundation  ;  the  scripture  testifying  that  we 
have  redemption  througli  the  blood  of  Jesus,  the  forgiveness  of  sins 
according  to  the  riches  of  his  grace."  Here  the  General,  letting  go 
my  hand,  which  he  had  held  from  the  moment  I  sat  down  at  his 
bed-side,  clasped  his  hands  together,  and,  looking  up  towards 
heaven,  said,  with  emphasis,  "  I  have  a  tender  reliance  on  the 
mercy  of  the  Almighty,  through  the  merits  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ."  He  replaced  his  hand  in  mine,  and  appearing  some- 
what spent,  closed  his  eyes.  A  little  after,  he  fastened  them  on 
me,  and  I  proceeded.  "  The  simple  truths  of  the  Gospel,  my 
dear  Sir,  which  require  no  abstruse  investigation,  but  faith  in  the 
veracity  of  God  who  cannot  lie,  are  best  suited  to  your  present 
condition,  and  they  are  full  of  consolation."  "  I  feel  them  to  be 
so,"  replied  lie.  I  then  repeated  these  texts  of  scripture  :— -It  is  a 
faithful  saying,  and  worthy  of  all  acceptation,  that  Christ  Jesus  came 
into  the  world  to  save  sinners,  and  of  sinners  the  chief.  I,  even  I,  am 
he  that  blotteth  out  thy  transgressions  for  mine  own  sake,  and  will  net 
remember  thy  sins.  Come  now,  and  let  us  reason  together,  saith  the 
Lord  ;  though  your  sins  be  as  scarlet,  they  shall  be  white  as  snow  ; 
though  they  be  red  like  crimson,  they  shall  be  as  wool.  "  This," 
said  he,  "  is  my  support.  Pray  for  mc."  "  Shall  I  pray  with 
you  V'  "  Yes.''  I  prayed  with  him,  and  heard  him  whisper  as 
I  went  along  ;  which  I  supposed  to  be  his  concurrence  with  the 
petitions.  At  the  conclusion  he  said,  "  Amen.  God  grant  it." 
M 

Being  about  to  part  with  him,  I  told  him  "  I  had  one  request 
to  make."    He  asked  "  what  it  was?"  I  answered,  «  that  what- 


♦ 


40 


ever  might  be  the  issue  of  his  affliction,  lie  would  give  his  testi- 
mony against  the  practice  of  duelling."  "  I  will,"  said  he,  u  I 
have  done  it.  If  that"  evidently  anticipating  the  event,  «  if  that 
be  the  issue,  you  will  find  it  in  writing.  If  it  please  Cod  that  I 
recover,  I  shall  do  it  in  a  manner  which  will  effectually  put  ;ne  out 
of  its  reach  in  future."  I  mentioned,  once  more,  the  importance 
of  renouncing  every  other  dependence  for  the  eternal  world,  hut 
.the  mercy  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus  ;  with  a  particular  reference 
to  the  catastrophe  of  the  morning.  The  General  was  affected, 
and  said,  "  Let  us  not  pursue  the  subject  any  further,  it  agitates 
me."  He  laid  his  hands  upon  his  breast,  with  symptoms  of 
y  uneasiness,  which  indicated  an  increased  difficulty  of  speaking. 
I  then' took  my  leave.  He  pressed  my  hand  affectionately,  and 
desired  to  see  me  again  at  a  proper  interval.  As  I  was  retiring, 
he  lifted  up  his  hands  in  the  attitude  of  prayer,  and  sard  feebly, 

"God  be  merciful  to  ."    His  voice  sunk,  so  that  I  heard  not 

the  rest  distinctly,  but  understood  him  to  quote  the  words  of  the 
publican  in  the  gospel,  and  to  end  the  sentence  with,  "  me  a  sin- 
ner." 

I  saw  him,  a  second  time,  on  the  morning  of  Thursday  ;  but 
from  his  appearance,  and  what  I  had  heard,  supposing  that  he 
could  not  speak  without  severe  effort,  I  had  no  conversation  with 
him.  I  prayed  for  a  moment  at  his  bed  side,  in  company  with 
his  overwhelmed  family  and  friends  ;  and  for  the  rest,  was  one  of 
the  mourning  spectators  of  his  composure  and  dignity  in  suffer- 
ing. His  mind  remained  in  its  former  state  :  and  he  viewed 
with  calmness  his  approaching  dissolution.  I  left  him  belween 
twelve  and  one,  and  at  two,  as  the  public  know,  he  breathed  his 
last. 

Iam,  Sir, 

With  much  respect,  ■  • 

Your  obedient  servant, 

J.  M.  MASON. 

Kai'-Y6rk,  Jmj  \8!h,  1804. 


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